Hatter
by percysjackson
Summary: "A dream is not reality, but who's to say which is which?" - In which Bethany Jameson meets the voices in her head. - Season 3B - Book 1 in the Wonderland Series


**_STILES_**

"No, no, no, no, no." Stiles Stilinski muttered fearfully, eyes shut tight as he turned in his sleep, "Don't let them in. Don't let them in. No, don't let them in."

Suddenly, his eyes shot open, arms slamming against something metal with a clang as his body jolted forward. After a brief moment of pause, he reached out again, slamming his hands against the enclosing surface. When it only rattled, he hit it harder, banging against the metal until it finally budged. In a flash, he tumbled out of the locker, stumbling slightly at the sudden move but staying on his feet. Taking a few steps forward, he met his own stare in a slightly grimy mirror, instantly recognizing that he was in the school's locker room.

A few seconds later, Stiles made his way towards the door that would take him out, exiting and shutting the door behind him. He walked through the halls, the only sound being his quiet footsteps. He turned a corner and immediately noticed that one of the classroom doors was open. He warily eyed the opening as he approached, stepping inside and taking in the scene before him.

The area was completely wrecked, with the window shutters twisted and malformed while the teacher's desk was laying on it's side in the corner. But, he barely even registered that the room was destroyed due to the eerily familiar landmark taking up the center of the room.

The Nemeton.

Stiles stepped forward almost as if he was in a trance, slowly moving closer to the old stump. He leaned over the oak remains, his arm reaching towards it as if it had a mind of it's own. He was a mere inch away from touching it when suddenly roots shot out, wrapping around his shaking hand.

Instantly, he shot into a sitting position on his bed, gasping for breath.

"You okay?" a slightly rough but distinctly feminine voice questioned from beside him, the slight rustling of sheets telling him that the speaker had sat up as well, "Stiles?"

He felt a comforting hand on his arm, the gesture calming a bit of his nerves. The dream was still fresh in his mind, but he couldn't help but feel more relaxed at the contact.

"Yeah. I was dreaming." Stiles sighed, his hand coming up to rest on top of where hers sat on his other arm, "It was weird. It was like... a dream within a dream."

"A nightmare?" she inquired as he felt her remaining hand come up to rub soothing circles on his shoulder.

"Yeah." he whispered, looking over at the girl beside him.

Her blonde hair fell to one side, cascading down her shoulder as she leaned to the side so she could look up at him. Her shockingly blue eyes were scanning his features with a slight smile on her face. Overall, she was gorgeous, pretty much model-like despite the fact that he knew she had just woken up.

Then suddenly, he realized something.

"Wait a second...who are you?" he inquired, confusion seeping into his expression, but for some reason, he didn't feel any fear even though she was a complete stranger. Instead, he felt... at home with the unknown blonde.

Before Stiles could ponder the strange feeling further, a loud creaking drew both of the teens' attention to the front of the room.

His bedroom door had moved outwards, opening just enough for a crack to be seen. Stiles could see nothing of what was past it, for the space beyond the door was pitch black.

"Hang on." Stiles muttered absent-mindedly, beginning to shift off the bed.

"Stiles, where are you going?" the girl whispered, her voice filled with worry.

"I'm just gonna close the door." he replied.

"Just go back to sleep." she urged, tugging lightly on his shoulder.

"No, no, I should close it." Stiles insisted.

"Don't worry about it." she mumbled.

"What if someone comes in?" Stiles stated, his tone firmer than before as he stood fully off the bed and inched towards his bedroom door.

"Like who?" she inquired, her voice becoming slightly darker as she continued when he didn't come back, "Just go back to sleep, Stiles."

"No." he breathed, "What if they get in?"

"What if who gets in? Stiles," her words becoming progressively more panicked as he reached towards the door handle, "Just leave it please. Stiles... Stiles, come back to bed. Stiles. Please."

With a single move, he opened the door and stood before the empty space.

"Don't Stiles. Don't! Don't go in there, please, don't go in." the girl's voice frantically called from behind him, as he walked through "Please, Stiles, don't! No, don't, please. Stiles!"

In a flash, her voice cut off as he found himself in a forest clearing. Blinding lights burst to life all around him, highlighting the ancient stump directly in front of him.

The Nemeton.

"It's a dream. This is just a dream. It's just a dream, get it out of your head, Stiles." his voice was panicked as he clutched his head, "You're dreaming. All right? So, wake up, Stiles. Wake up, Stiles. _Wake up_!"

He woke up suddenly, his eyes sleepily blinking open.

"Hey, time to get up, kiddo." Stiles looked up to see his father standing in his doorway, "Get your butt to school."

With that, he continued down the hall, leaving Stiles to glance around his room for a moment before he stood up and began getting ready for school.

* * *

"And you couldn't wake up?" Scott asked him as they both walked down the steps outside their school.

"Nope, and it was beyond terrifying." Stiles confirmed, "You ever hear of sleep paralysis?"

"Uh, no." his best friend shrugged a bit, "Do I want to?"

"Have you ever had a dream where you feel like you're about to wake up but you can't move or talk?" Stiles inquired, glancing over at the werewolf to see his expression.

"Yeah." Scott agreed, "Yeah, I've had that."

"It happens because during REM sleep your body is basically paralyzed. It's called muscle atonia." Stiles informed, "That way if you start dreaming about running, you don't actually start running in your bed."

"That makes sense." Scott nodded as they walked.

"But sometimes your mind can wake up before your body does." Stiles continued, "So for this split second, you're actually aware that your body is paralyzed."

"And that's the terrifying part." Scott noted.

"It turns your dream into a nightmare." he agreed, "You can feel like you're falling, like you're being strangled, or, in my case, like you're at the center of a grove of magical trees where human sacrifices took place."

"You think it means something?" Scott inquired as he pushed open the school doors, both of the two boys stepping inside.

"What if what we did that night," Stiles said thoughtfully, "What if it's still affecting us?"

"Post-traumatic stress?" Scott offered questioningly.

"Or something." Stiles replied.

They entered the classroom, both of them taking their seats and placing their backpacks onto the ground.

"But you want to know what scares me the most?" Stiles stated, prompting Scott to twist around in his seat to look at him, "I'm not even sure if this is real."

* * *

A terror-filled yell sprang out of Stiles as he was finally wrenched out of the nightmare, his limbs thrashing around in his sheets as his father raced into the room. He didn't hesitate to grab up his son in a restraining grasp, holding him close and preventing the boy from hurting himself. Stiles, still in the throes of panic, began to fight against his father's hold.

"Hey, hey, hey. It's okay." John consoled Stiles, the boy gradually stopping his wild movements and clutching his father's arm, "It's okay. You're okay."

* * *

Little did either of the Stilinski men know, at the exact moment that Stiles woke up, a certain new resident of Beacon Hills jolted awake at the same time. She screamed frantically, her shockingly blue eyes clouded with residual fear from the nightmare. Her cries woke up her older brother, who hurried into her room and held her down. He clutched her close while she slowly came to her senses.

None of the two house's occupants knew about the other's situation, and yet, the events couldn't have been more connected. While the two teens had never met, it was no coincidence that the two had just practically shared a dream.

This was only the beginning.

* * *

 ** _A/N: Hey there!_**

 ** _Alright, so this is the introduction to my new story, Hatter! This book will take place during season 3B of Teen Wolf, only with my own original character thrown in and some plot twists to keep it interesting._**

 ** _I hope you like it so far, and if you do, let me know what you think! I love feedback, and criticism is welcome as long as it is constructive._**

 ** _Don't forget to review, favorite, and follow this story, because it honestly makes my day when I see that someone likes my writing enough to do so._**

 ** _Thank you so much for choosing to read this, and I'll be sure to get the first chapter out soon!_**

 ** _-Sara_**


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